STAIRWELL BEFORE + AFTER

We have had house guests almost solid since Christmas Day.  So much so that the people in my art class are convinced we are really running a Bed and Breakfast here.  One set of house guests left last Thursday and the next guests arrive this Thursday.  Instead of relaxing this past weekend we tackled a project that has made such a huge difference I thought you might enjoy the results.   

We bought this two-story with an ODD landing on the stairs.  It's something like a plant shelf, but it's a whopping 34" deep by 7 feet long of useless space.   One of the neighbors has a full size carousel horse sitting on hers, it's that spacious!  I prefer function, especially when space and storage are at a premium.  That ledge is too high up to store things and the deep inset on the bottom half is actually a nonfunctioning area on the exterior of the house.  Unable to change the construction (remember HOA?)  I just needed to at least not hate it so much.  I am still not sure what I will put up there...maybe a mattress and dresser for my new Bed and Breakfast.  This is a photo taken before we moved in that clearly looks like one of those typical sad "before" photos.   It's all I could find that showed the $19.99 original light fixture.  Besides, when I told Mini Mcgyver my thoughts he had the ladder out in 2.2, more excited than I was to make the change.

LANDING AFTER

I found a new chandelier that is perfect for a stairwell as it doesn't have glass to keep clean, plus it's easier to dust and change the bulbs.  I think it was from Lowes; but maybe Home Depot.  I'll keep my eyes open for some tall vases in my colors and a variety of shapes and sizes.  Maybe I'll take up sculpturing because I know I'd have a place to display my work.  Wait; maybe even a mattress and dresser for my new Bed and Breakfast.  

Things were very "masgusting" when we took possession (my grandsons baby word that I never want to forget).  We were forced to pull up the carpet on the first floor and stairs when we discovered the previous owners furniture covered many of these stains and after a couple cleanings this is what it looked like.  I know I'm grossing you out but you can imagine how embarrassed I was to let anyone in the door or live like this.  We decided to remove the old tile in the entry and the process was quite messy but I like even flow throughout.

MASGUSTING CARPET

TEARING OUT THE TILE

Everything has a fresh coat of paint, new woodwork and trim.  What remains is how I will finish the handrails and newel posts; probably paint them black with white balusters like I did in our last house.  My dream would be to switch out the wood balusters for wrought iron, but that might be way down the remodeling road.  Right now I'm dreading stripping all the heavily slathered latex paint, but already stripped the newels and love the feel of my hands not sticking anymore. 
   

Here is the entry looking from the stairs, the hallway to the garage and another good after photo of the after.  I used leftover Flor carpet tiles to make custom rugs.  The painting in the entry is something I started and just hung it up unfinished until I can get back to it.  There's a sneak peak of the bookcases that will be another reveal.  My brilliant ideas combined with Tim's construction abilities, elbow grease and enthusiasm have proved once again that we are still a dynamic duo.  While I am keenly aware of resale I'm not concerned at all about the bold stripes since the whole area would take less than a quart of paint to change.  If by any chance you are holding back from going bold on a feature wall let me assure you this is the safest, least expensive move to make.  Tell me your thoughts.